January 10, 2008

• Hey, friends,
  Doyle and I are off to Sarasota, Fla., on Saturday for a long-awaited road trip. We'll make "the journey the destination" as we drive the 21 hours down there, over two days. We hope to visit Shearwater Pottery in Ocean Springs, Miss., either on the way down or the way back. My creative husband has developed a deep interest in learning to throw pots, and I've always loved pottery, and have wanted a potter's wheel ever since I took some pottery courses in high school. In fact, Doyle's planning to build a potter's wheel as soon as we get back. I can't wait to get my hands in some wet clay again. You can't imagine how much fun it is to throw a pot if you've never done it....like making mudpies as a kid, but even better.
  In Florida, we'll stay at my sister's house, which will be our base camp as we visit D's two kids, two grandchildren, and my other sister and her family, as well as a handful of close friends we still have in the Sarasota area. On our way back, we hope to spend a night in my Mississippi hometown of Macon, if the timing works out right. And maybe even get a face-to-face visit with Mr. and Mrs. Avarel!
  We're looking forward to having a chance to spend time visiting on the road, listening to music, reading aloud (I started reading Doyle the Narnia books a year ago and never finished - can you believe he's never read them?) and I may also take my knitting needles and try to finish a  blue scarf I started last winter for Jamie.
  I had a fun afternoon off today - flex time for working last Saturday. I drove over to Cotter, a wonderful, tiny town on the White River, the Trout Fishing Capitol of the US, ( about an hour away) and met my dear friend Janet, ("ozarksfarmgirl") for lunch and catching up. Janet lives about an hour in the other direction, in the Missouri Ozarks, so it's a good halfway point for us to meet.
   After a long lunch at a little tearoom, we drove into Cotter and visited a cute little gift shop in a historic barber shop building.
  

  
  The Rainbow Bridge over the White River at Cotter
  
  

   Then Jan wanted to show me a wonderful old house built in 1914 overlooking the river, Hopkinswoode, that's now a B&B. We didn't know if anybody was there, but we marched right up to the door and knocked, and ended up spending a delightful half-hour with the owners, who invited us right in and showed us around the downstairs.
  

   
  

  The woman inherited the big old two-story stone house - her family has owned it for 100 years. We fell totally under its spell - gorgeous views of the river and the hills, wonderful antiques - and now Jan and I are planning to either talk our husbands into a weekend there for a "couple's visit," or inviting two of our old woman friends from Mississippi up to meet us there for a few days of drinking coffee, visiting on the porch, and exploring the antique stores and auctions in the area. Sounds great, huh?
  I'll take my laptop with us and will be in touch, so y'all keep writing. Next photos will be of palm trees and flowers instead of our spare and lovely winter woods in the Ozarks. I love to visit Sarasota, but I always feel a tug at my heart when we drive down out of these old hills and back into the flatland, and feel a little thrill of joy when they come back into view again on the way home.
  God bless you all!

  • 7:37 pm
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